Last year, Richard Pringle experienced the worst possible thing that a parent can experience: His three-year-old son died.
Richard has had a difficult year since his son died. But he’s pulled through, and now he’s sharing what he’s learned.
Scroll down to read Richard’s beautiful and moving list. He calls it “The 10 most important things I’ve learnt since losing my beautiful little boy,” and parents around the world are sharing it with each other.
How do you move forward after losing your child? I can’t imagine how hard it would be. But sadly, Richard Pringle was forced to find out after losing his three-year son to a brain hemorrhage in 2016.
Now, it’s been a year since little Hughie passed away, and while Richard continues to heal the wounds, he’s also gone on Facebook to offer parents some advice.
His words go straight to the heart and remind you to make the most of the time you have with your loved ones. Because you never know how much time you have left together.
1. “You can never ever kiss and love too much.”
2. “You always have time. Stop what you’re doing and play, even if it’s just for minute. Nothing’s that important that it can’t wait.”
3. “Take as many photos and record as many videos as humanly possible. One day that might be all you have.”
4. “Don’t spend money, spend time. You think what you spend matters? It doesn’t. What you do matters. Jump in puddles, go for walks. Swim in the sea, build a camp and have fun. That’s all they want. I can’t remember what we bought Hughie I can only remember what we did.”
5. “Sing. Sing songs together. My happiest memories are of Hughie sitting on my shoulders or sitting next to me in the car singing our favourite songs. Memories are created in music.”
6. “Cherish the simplest of things. Night times, bedtimes, reading stories. Dinners together. Lazy Sundays. Cherish the simplest of times. They are what I miss the most. Don’t let those special times pass you by unnoticed.”
7. “Always kiss those you love goodbye and if you forget. Go back and kiss them. You never know if it’s the last time you’ll get the chance.”
8. “Make boring things fun. Shopping trips, car journeys, walking to the shops. Be silly, tell jokes, laugh, smile and enjoy yourselves. They’re only chores if you treat them like that. Life is too short not to have fun.”
9. “Keep a journal. Write down everything your little ones do that lights up your world. The funny things they say, the cute things they do. We only started doing this after we lost Hughie. We wanted to remember everything. Now we do it for Hettie and we will for Hennie too. You’ll have these memories written down forever and when you’re older you can look back and cherish every moment.”
10. “If you have your children with you. To kiss goodnight. To have breakfast with. To walk to school. To take to university. To watch get married. You are blessed. Never ever forget that. ❤️”
We think everyone can learn from these 10 points. Because, let’s face it, we’re not always great at showing appreciation to our loved ones. And we don’t know how much time we have left together. Please share if you think more people should hear this advice!
Published by Newsner, please like
